Folarin Balogun will play tonight — and the way it happened is one of the most extraordinary stories in World Cup history.
FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee overturned Balogun’s one-game suspension Sunday, invoking Article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code to place his ban on a one-year probationary period rather than enforcing it immediately. The New York Times reported that President Trump called FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Wednesday asking for a review, and Trump followed up on Truth Social Sunday thanking FIFA for — his words — reversing a great injustice.
It appears to be only the second time in World Cup history FIFA has lifted a red card suspension — the first since Brazil’s Garrincha was cleared to play in the 1962 final.
Belgium is furious. The Royal Belgian Football Association called the decision astonishing, arguing it directly contradicts Article 66.4 of the same FIFA Disciplinary Code and the tournament’s own competition regulations.
Balogun leads the U-S with three goals in four games. Tonight he gets to use them. USA versus Belgium — kickoff is five o’clock Pacific, eight Eastern at Lumen Field in Seattle, live on FOX.
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